The inclusion of cord rewinder apparatus in dry vacuum cleaners is well known. A typical cord rewinder apparatus includes a reel upon which a power cord is wound. A spring or other biasing means is operatively connected to the reel to rotate the reel in a direction to retract or rewind the power cord when it is at least partially unwound from the reel. Also included is a brake assembly which, in its locked position, frictionally stops rotational movement of the reel in the rewind or retract direction. When rewinding the cord is desired, the brake assembly is disengaged, manually or otherwise, from the reel, thereby unlocking the reel and enabling the biasing means to rotate the reel in the retract direction. Power is coupled from the power cord via electrical components, including conductive strips and contacts disposed on the reel. The contacts are electrically connected to the motor, fan and other electrically-driven components of the vacuum cleaner. Some examples of conventional cord rewinder apparatus for vacuum cleaners are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,255,768 and 5,622,243, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.
Such conventional cord rewinder apparatus are not suitable for use in wet vacuum cleaners. For a cord rewinder to be included in any device, it must meet the standards outlined by Underwriters Laboratories (UL), including strict maximum temperature rise limits for the electrical components. Currently, most commercially available vacuum cleaners utilize a high amperage draw, which causes the electrical components thereof to heat up to unacceptably high temperatures. To reduce those temperatures and cool the components, dry vacuum cleaners are often equipped with elements, such as baffles or the like, to divert a portion of the vacuum cleaner discharge airflow directly through the coil rewinder and over the heated components to cool them. Using the vacuum discharge airflow as a cooling medium is not feasible for existing wet vacuum cleaners, inasmuch as it is imprudent and unsafe to pass the discharge air, which may contain water vapor, over electrical components. Heretofore, the only cord rewinders that have been able to pass the UL temperature rise tests are those incorporating discharge airflow cooling. As a result, wet vacuum cleaners currently on the market do not include cord rewinders.
In view of the foregoing deficiencies of the conventional apparatus, it would be desirable to provide a UL certifiable wet vacuum cleaner that incorporates a cord rewinder. It would also be desirable to provide a method of and apparatus for cooling the cord rewinder using the discharge airflow as the cooling medium. It would further be desirable to provide a cord rewinder that is compact and readily incorporated in existing wet vacuum cleaners without any modifications or adjustments to the existing vacuum cleaner structure.